Petitions should be ignored

Published: Thursday, November 15, 2012 at 4:16 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, November 15, 2012 at 4:16 p.m.

You might have heard of or even signed one of the many petitions making their way around the Internet chat rooms asking that Louisiana and other states be allowed to secede from the U.S.

Little can come of this effort other than to drive yet another wedge between the hard-working and dedicated people of this nation.

For hundreds of years, the U.S. has withstood every threat it has faced.

From foreign despots intent on ruling the world to domestic efforts to tear the nation apart, America has survived and even thrived thanks to the hardships we have endured together.

For those hundreds of years, every four years there have been presidential elections in which the people of the nation went to the polls and had their say.

In most of those elections, about half the people were happy with the results and about half disappointed. Some of the contests were landslides, but the popular vote is usually nearly split.

And every four years, depending on the outcome of those elections, the presidency has either changed hands or stayed in the control of its previous occupant.

This we have done peacefully, if not quietly.

Our elections are matters of national significance. They are rancorous, scandal-filled affairs that sometimes test the limits of our patience.

They have always been, though, respected by the vast majority of Americans.

That is why we can peacefully transfer power from one president to the next. It is why we can have matters of great debate settled in Congress and, whether each of us likes the outcome or not, it is legitimate.

That long tradition of freedom and liberty, though, could be seeing signs of trouble.

No longer is it good enough that one political party won the presidency. Now, it seems, if one party wins, those who lost start asking to secede from the union.

That is not going to happen, of course. There is no serious movement by large numbers of Americans to create their own nation.

But the level of vitriol has reached new heights with this latest political ploy.

Talk of secession is ridiculous and unrealistic. But it does have some real-world effects.

For instance, it erodes our sense that we are one nation, regardless of what our political differences might be. It challenges the notion that win or lose, our elections are legitimate. And it needlessly brings into doubt our willingness to respect each other’s views.

So if you see one of these petitions, do what every great American should do: Ignore it.

<p>You might have heard of or even signed one of the many petitions making their way around the Internet chat rooms asking that Louisiana and other states be allowed to secede from the U.S.</p><p>Little can come of this effort other than to drive yet another wedge between the hard-working and dedicated people of this nation.</p><p>For hundreds of years, the U.S. has withstood every threat it has faced.</p><p>From foreign despots intent on ruling the world to domestic efforts to tear the nation apart, America has survived and even thrived thanks to the hardships we have endured together.</p><p>For those hundreds of years, every four years there have been presidential elections in which the people of the nation went to the polls and had their say.</p><p>In most of those elections, about half the people were happy with the results and about half disappointed. Some of the contests were landslides, but the popular vote is usually nearly split.</p><p>And every four years, depending on the outcome of those elections, the presidency has either changed hands or stayed in the control of its previous occupant.</p><p>This we have done peacefully, if not quietly.</p><p>Our elections are matters of national significance. They are rancorous, scandal-filled affairs that sometimes test the limits of our patience.</p><p>They have always been, though, respected by the vast majority of Americans.</p><p>That is why we can peacefully transfer power from one president to the next. It is why we can have matters of great debate settled in Congress and, whether each of us likes the outcome or not, it is legitimate.</p><p>That long tradition of freedom and liberty, though, could be seeing signs of trouble.</p><p>No longer is it good enough that one political party won the presidency. Now, it seems, if one party wins, those who lost start asking to secede from the union.</p><p>That is not going to happen, of course. There is no serious movement by large numbers of Americans to create their own nation.</p><p>But the level of vitriol has reached new heights with this latest political ploy.</p><p>Talk of secession is ridiculous and unrealistic. But it does have some real-world effects.</p><p>For instance, it erodes our sense that we are one nation, regardless of what our political differences might be. It challenges the notion that win or lose, our elections are legitimate. And it needlessly brings into doubt our willingness to respect each other's views.</p><p>So if you see one of these petitions, do what every great American should do: Ignore it.</p><p>Editorials represent the opinions of</p><p>the newspaper, not of any individual.</p>